In the summer of 1948, Israel was desperately looking for new fighters
to equip the Israeli Defence Force/Air Force. Israeli agents in the USA
managed to purchase four P-51 Mustangs in the USA. These were shipped
to Israel in crates, despite the arms embargo. The crates they were transported
in were marked as agricultural equipment, the first two arriving in Israel
in September 1948.

The War of Independence

An Israeli P-51 Mustang.

The first pair of Mustangs to arrive in Israel were quickly assembled
and rushed into service in Israel's first fighter squadron. They were
first stationed at Herzelia and later at Castina. The aircraft was by
far the best in IDF/AF service. Its superior range enabled it to conduct
reconnaissance missions all over the Middle East. In addition, it was
faster than any airplane on the Arab side, and was not threatened by interception.

But the Mustang was also used in strike and interception missions. For
some time, RAF Mosquito reconnaissance aircraft had been flying above
Israel. The IDF/AF could not challenge these aircraft, as none of its
own could fly as high as the Mosquito. The arrival of the P-51 changed
the situation. A first attempt at intercepting the Mustang was a failure,
but on November 20th, 1948, a Mustang was scrambled to Castina to intercept
the intruder. The Mustang shot down the RAF Mosquito, the first victim
of an Israeli P-51.

The first encounter between Mustangs and enemy fighters occurred on January
5th, 1949. A short dogfight opposed the Israeli Mustang to Egyptian Macchi
MC.205s, the fight ending with no casualties on either side. On January
7th however, the two Mustangs were escorting three T-6 Harvards on a strike
mission when they were intercepted by six MC.205s. In the ensuing dogfight,
the Mustangs shot down three Egyptian fighters, showing the P-51's superiority.

The second pair of Mustangs bought in the USA had arrived in October
1948 but were not assembled quickly enough to see action in the War of
Independence, because of lack of spare parts.

Postwar

After the end of the War of Independence, the Mustang began "regular"
service in the IDF/AF. The two sole Mustangs which had served during the
war had been rushed into service as conditions allowed. The IDF/AF started
operating the second pair of Mustangs, and wanted more. In the early fifties,
36 other P-51s were purchased in the USA, and in June 1952, 25 Swedish
Mustangs were purchased from Sweden, which was phasing the Mustang out
of operational service. These were flown to Israel in early 1953. In 1955,
another batch of 30 was purchased from Italy and shipped to Israel. However,
not all of them were assembled and flown, probably to be used as spare
parts reserve. One of the reasons for this might be that the Italian P-51s
were already war-weary aircraft, purchased from surplus depots in Germany,
and some of them probably had already logged a large number of flying
hours. The Mustangs were to replace the Avia S.199 (Czech-built Bf 109G).

With a total of 79 operational Mustangs and 26 Mustang airframes in Israel,
the fighter quickly became the backbone of the IDF/AF. The Mustangs were
to see action again in 1951. When Syrian forces ambushed and killed 7
Israeli soldiers, four Mustangs and four Spitfires led a retaliatory mission
on April 5th, 1951, against the Syrian police station and army camp at
El-Hama.

The Mustangs also saw action when an Israeli ship ran aground near Saudi
Arabia in April 1954. The Mustangs were tasked to cover the rescue operation
and then destroy the ship to prevent it from being captured by the enemy.
In 1956, four Mustangs bombed the Jordanian police station at Kalkillia.

Retirement and renewed service

An Israeli P-51 Mustang. This aircraft (N°19)
was lost in 1956 during the Suez crisis campaign near Sharm-El-Sheik
in the southern Sinai peninsula

In the early 1950s, the IDF/AF introduced jet fighters: the British Meteor,
the French Mystère and Ouragan. The Mustang lost its role of frontline
fighter and a large number of Mustangs was sent into storage in 1956.
Only the 116th Squadron remained operational on the Mustang, its purpose
being to train new pilots. However, the international situation was to
reintroduce the Mustang in regular IDF/AF service with the outbreak of
the Suez crisis in October 1956. A second squadron was formed with Mustangs
taken out of storage, bringing the number of operational Mustangs to 48.

If the performance of the Mustang was inferior to that of modern jets,
the P-51 still had a major advantage over more modern aircraft: its range.
Thus, Israeli Mustangs were tasked with the destruction of Egyptian fighters
and bombers at remote bases, at ranges that could not be reached by the
jet fighters.

On the first day of operation - October 29th - another task was given
to the Mustangs: disruption of enemy communications. The Mustangs were
equipped with a weight attached to a cable, which was to be hung from
the aircraft's tail. This device was supposed to cut the enemy's telephone
line cables. Four Mustangs were equipped as "cable-cutters"
and took off around noon, but upon arrival at the target, some of them
had lost their equipment. Instead of aborting their mission, the pilots
decided to pursue and cut the cable with their propellers and wings. This
was particularly dangerous but the mission was a success.

The more conventional task assigned to the Mustang was delayed by a few
days as the IAF High Command refused to allow piston-engined aircraft
to enter the combat zone before air superiority was achieved. Only on
October 31st did the Mustangs enter the fighting. They were mostly used
on strike missions against enemy forces, outposts, fortified points, roads,
shipping and other targets. The Mustangs flew 184 missions during the
Suez crisis campaign, losing only 7 aircraft.

The advent of the jet-age and the improvements in anti-aircraft defenses
rendered the P-51 Mustang obsolete. On January 15th, 1961, the P-51 Mustang
retired from Israeli service. It was the last piston-engined combat aircraft
in Israeli service and had a large influence on Israeli tactics. It helped
develop the concept of multirole aircraft, being used for air superiority,
strike and reconnaissance purposes, which lead to the contemporary tactical
concepts of the IDF/AF. Of the 79 Mustangs that flew with the IDF/AF,
only four remain (including one in flying condition), all of which are
conserved at the IAF Museum at Hatzerim.

This article was written by
k51d. Version 1.0. Any addition or correction is welcome.